Hollywood Hot Spot

“My role here is as the queen mother,” she says. “I give dishes a final touch and stamp of approval.”

DAHLIA NARVAEZ

Pastry Chef

“My signature dish is the butterscotch budino,” she says. “It’s a pudding with caramel sauce, sea salt and whipped cream.”

MATT MOLINA

Executive Chef

“When I’m in the back, everyone in the restaurant is a celebrity. We’re analyzing every single dish.”

In the five years since Osteria Mozza opened, the L.A. restaurant-known for its handmade pastas and its “mozzarella bar”-has become a foodie destination, ranking high on Bon Appetit magazine’s list of toughest reservations to land in the country. It’s also a magnet for Hollywood A-listers, including Christina Aguilera and Jake Gyllenhaal. “It’s flattering when celebrities come in to have a great meal, not just to be seen,” says Nancy Silverton, 57, who co-owns Osteria and its neighboring sister restaurant Pizzeria Mozza with renowned chef Mario Batali. The Italian eateries have even gotten the presidential seal of approval-the staff has cooked for the First Lady three times and catered an Obama fund-raiser. “Making steak for Obama and pizza for Michelle was a highlight,” says executive chef Matt Molina, 34. “She loves the pizza and usually gets the one with the margherita topping.”

Another Mozza milestone: This year three of its chefs-Silverton, Molina, and pastry chef Dahlia Narvaez, 37-were nominated for James Beard awards, the Oscar of the food world. But even with all the laurels, Silverton-who once worked alongside Wolfgang Puck as a pastry chef at Spago-strives to execute the advice she received from Batali. “He said Mozza should embrace Italian tradition and technique, then personalize it,” she says. “We want to be a Los Angeles experience that tastes like you’re in Italy.”